A needle-free bubble injector enabling depth-controlled isotropic and anisotropic perforation using electrically induced bubbles and heat generated by electric discharge

IF 4.4 4区医学 Q3 ENGINEERING, BIOMEDICAL

Biomedical Microdevices Pub Date : 2026-05-26 DOI:10.1007/s10544-026-00819-9

Yuudai Aokusa, Nobutoshi Ota, Shigeaki Miura, Mayu Nakahigashi, Yuma Minami, Yoko Yamanishi

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Transdermal drug delivery is advantageous in administering therapeutic agents, such as many vaccines and macromolecular drugs that do not remain in the body after oral ingestion. Needle-free injectors have been developed as an alternative to the existing syringes for drug delivery; however, because of the difficulties in controlling the jet flow during perforation, their practical use remains a challenge. Herein, we propose a novel needle-free injector. By controlling the distance between the target and the device, the injector performs (i) isotropic perforation using electrically induced bubbles or (ii) anisotropic perforation using localized heating generated by electric discharge at the device tip. Furthermore, by controlling the applied voltage, the size of the electrically induced bubble and the speed of the microjet generated by bubble collapse can be regulated. As a result, the perforation depth was controlled in the range of 0.7–1.1 mm, which is difficult to achieve using conventional needle-free injectors. These results indicate the potential of the proposed method for precise and minimally invasive transdermal drug delivery.

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一种无针气泡注入器，利用电诱导气泡和放电产生的热量，实现深度控制的各向同性和各向异性射孔

经皮给药有利于给药治疗药物，如许多疫苗和大分子药物，这些药物在口服后不会留在体内。已开发出无针注射器，作为现有注射器的替代药物输送；然而，由于在射孔过程中难以控制射流，它们的实际应用仍然是一个挑战。在此，我们提出了一种新的无针注射器。通过控制目标与装置之间的距离，注入器可以实现(i)利用电诱导气泡进行各向同性射孔，或（ii）利用装置尖端放电产生的局部加热进行各向异性射孔。此外，通过控制施加电压，可以调节电诱导气泡的大小和气泡破裂产生的微射流的速度。因此，射孔深度控制在0.7-1.1 mm范围内，这是传统无针射孔器难以实现的。这些结果表明所提出的方法具有精确和微创经皮给药的潜力。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Biomedical Microdevices 工程技术-工程：生物医学

CiteScore

6.90

自引率

3.60%

发文量

审稿时长

6 months

期刊介绍： Biomedical Microdevices: BioMEMS and Biomedical Nanotechnology is an interdisciplinary periodical devoted to all aspects of research in the medical diagnostic and therapeutic applications of Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (BioMEMS) and nanotechnology for medicine and biology. General subjects of interest include the design, characterization, testing, modeling and clinical validation of microfabricated systems, and their integration on-chip and in larger functional units. The specific interests of the Journal include systems for neural stimulation and recording, bioseparation technologies such as nanofilters and electrophoretic equipment, miniaturized analytic and DNA identification systems, biosensors, and micro/nanotechnologies for cell and tissue research, tissue engineering, cell transplantation, and the controlled release of drugs and biological molecules. Contributions reporting on fundamental and applied investigations of the material science, biochemistry, and physics of biomedical microdevices and nanotechnology are encouraged. A non-exhaustive list of fields of interest includes: nanoparticle synthesis, characterization, and validation of therapeutic or imaging efficacy in animal models; biocompatibility; biochemical modification of microfabricated devices, with reference to non-specific protein adsorption, and the active immobilization and patterning of proteins on micro/nanofabricated surfaces; the dynamics of fluids in micro-and-nano-fabricated channels; the electromechanical and structural response of micro/nanofabricated systems; the interactions of microdevices with cells and tissues, including biocompatibility and biodegradation studies; variations in the characteristics of the systems as a function of the micro/nanofabrication parameters.